Pope Liberace II is my Pimp : Garage presents Vestimentality

Last night I went to a panel discussion about Garage magazine’s Vestimentality project at Somerset House. American writer and cultural critic, Cintra Wilson, was commissioned to write tongue-in-cheek – who am I kidding, downright rude! – manifestos for brands such as Versace, Givenchy and Tom Ford. These slogans were then worked into a final collection of garments by knitwear duo Leutton Postle.

Fashion editor Chloe Kerman explained that when she, and Editor-in-chief Dasha Zhokova, had the idea for the project they wanted to use a jumper because it was a basic, universal item. This was when they approached Leutton Postle. Daniella Maiorano created a short film capturing the design process, which was shown at the panel:

Once the knitwear design duo received the five slogans they took the opportunity to create a retrospective of their work. Each jumper was assigned to represent one of their five seasons, by taking the fabrics, the colours and the themes of their collections. Prior to this project, the pair hadn’t included words in their designs. During the Q+A they explained that they’d considered it previously but, in order to avoid clichés, wanted to use something ironic and cheesy, like Steps lyrics (brilliant!).

The jumpers are amazing. I think it’s the synergy between the design and the words that really works. And Cintra Wilson definitely has a way with words! She explained that the inspiration for the Tommy Hilfiger slogan came from their recent adverts, which seemingly present an extended family of beautiful people. Cintra’s interpretation? “Prep school yacht was marooned on Gilligan’s Island now we’re sister-wives of the millionaire”.

Similarly, Versace’s, “Pope Liberace II is my pimp”, was dedicated to Donatella because, “Bless her, she wasn’t the Versace born with taste”. It’s worth noting that the brands represented in this project don’t advertise with Garage magazine!

During the discussion I liked the explanation for the little things you don’t consider at first glance. For example, Ben Weller was selected as photographer for this shoot because his images have a quiet, stillness quality to them. The choice of the bare location and the model styled with the same jeans in every image ensures the jumpers are making all the noise.